Anthropic’s PAC spent more than $250K in third quarter, splitting between parties

Anthropic’s corporate political action committee poured $161,000 into campaigns across the aisle last month, bringing their total third-quarter spending to more than $250,000, according to spending records first shared with The Hill.

The employee-funded PAC, AnthroPAC, spent more than $256,000 across the third quarter, marking the artificial intelligence firm’s latest push for political clout in Washington.

The party breakdown for Anthropic’s total third-quarter contributions was 50.6 percent for Republicans and 49.4 percent for Democrats.

Overall, AnthroPAC spent $130,000 on Republican campaigns and $126,750 on Democrats in the third quarter, according to spending records obtained by The Hill ahead of the monthly federal filing deadline next Tuesday.

September was the company’s biggest month for spending as the midterm election approaches. About $77,000 was spent in August, and $17,500 in July.

Recipients of the political donations include the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and various party-affiliated PACs.

Some of the GOP donation recipients include Sens. Mike Rounds (S.D.), Kevin Cramer (N.D.), Kevin Hern (Okla.), Jon Husted (Ohio) and Ashley Moody (Fla.), along with Reps. Lisa McClain (Mich.), Laurel Lee (Fla.), Brian Mast (Fla.), Rob Wittman (Va.) and Tom Emmer (Minn.). Mike Rogers, who is running for a Senate seat in Michigan, also received donation funds.

Democratic recipients include Sens. Ben Ray Luján (N.M.), Adam Schiff (Calif.), Mark Kelly (Ariz.), Alex Padilla (Calif.), Chris Coons (Del.) and Mark Warner (Va.).

Anthropic launched the employee-funded PAC in April, and it is overseen by a bipartisan board.

The donations are capped at $5,000 per person per year under federal law and will be publicly reported through Federal Election Commission filings. Other technology companies such as Nvidia , Google, Microsoft and Amazon have similarly structured PACs.

Shortly after the PAC’s launch, a handful of figures in President Trump’s orbit expressed skepticism Friday that it would donate to both sides given Anthropic’s rocky relationship with the Trump administration and past donations to Democrats.

Anthropic cannot contribute directly to the PAC, but it has thrown money into other political initiatives this year. This included $40 million to Public First Action, a group launched last year to support efforts to develop AI safeguards.

Anthropic clashed with the Trump administration earlier this year over its push for AI safeguards. The Pentagon took the unprecedented move in February to label Anthropic a supply chain risk after the company demanded its technology not be used in fully autonomous lethal weapons or for the mass surveillance of Americans.

Anthropic sued the Pentagon in California and Washington, D.C., arguing the agency retaliated against the AI firm for what it believes is a “protected viewpoint” of the company. A federal judge in California ruled the blacklist was illegal and that it violated the First Amendment and due process clause of the Fifth Amendment.

A three-judge panel at the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with the Trump administration, setting the stage for a potential Supreme Court fight. Earlier this week, Anthropic asked the appeals court to reconsider their decision.